Today, at Google’s I/O developer conference, the company announced a number of updates for Google Photos — with shared libraries, suggested sharing, photo books, and an integration with Google Lens being the biggest announcements.
The app — which currently boasts 500 million users just two years after its launch — offers photo storage and management for iOS, Android, and the web, and allows users to upload unlimited images.
What we covered?
Suggested sharing
You can share images with a non-Google Photos user, too, via email or text message. Your recipient will receive a link to a webpage where they can view or download the pictures.
Shared libraries
With shared libraries, you can now share a library with another Google user, and have photos with certain people in them automatically uploaded to the new library. Onstage, Sabharwal created a new album with his wife, and set it up so that photos from each of their libraries of her and their kids would upload to the shared collection. Right now, you can only share your library (or a subset of your library) with one other person.
Photo books
Google announced a shopping update to Google Photos that resembles the service Shutterfly: You can now buy physical books — hardcover for $19.99 or soft for $9.99 — within Google Photos.
Integration with Google Lens
Finally, Google’s AI-powered Google Lens software will also be deeply integrated with Google Photos. Lens can identify different elements of a photo and make them interactive.
Back Up Photos From Other Apps
Google Photos’ auto-backup is handy, but by default, it only backs up photos taken with the default Camera app. If you want to also back up photos you took in Instagram, WhatsApp, Viber, and other similar Android apps, you can do so. You just need to know where those apps store the photos they take.
